Venture Window LLC, based in Cranston, Rhode Island, has been providing high-quality window, siding, and door installations for over 40 years. Founded by college friends Bruce Schulbaum and his business partner, the company employs 15 staff members and operates six vehicles to serve customers across Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.
- 4 hours of bookkeeping saved each month
- 100% receipt compliance (compared to 50% before)
While the business has grown steadily, managing employee expenses became a pressing challenge for the team.
The Challenges
Balancing Flexibility with Control Over Employee Spending
To enable technicians to purchase necessary materials like lumber or tools, Venture Window provided employees with traditional credit cards and set monthly spending limits of $2,000–$3,000. However, this flexibility often came at a cost. Because of the high spend limit and lack of controls, employees misused cards to pay for personal expenses, including family meals and utility bills. In particular, the company experienced difficulties with staff members who intended to quit and exploited their spending allowances, leaving the company with little recourse.
Venture Window also lacked visibility into purchases, making it difficult to catch misuse until statements arrived.
The result was not only financial loss but also a growing frustration with the need to constantly monitor and police employee purchases.
Inefficient Receipt Tracking and Reconciliation
Managing receipts was a manual, error-prone process that consumed hours of administrative time each month:
- Employees frequently lost or failed to submit receipts for purchases.
- Admins had to manually compare physical receipts to bank transactions, which was a tedious and incomplete process, often leaving gaps in records.
This inefficiency created a lack of transparency in expense management and increased the risk of compliance issues, particularly during audits.
A Need for Better Fuel Expense Oversight
With six vehicles operating across multiple states, fuel costs represented a significant portion of Venture Window’s monthly expenses. However, tracking fuel purchases was a challenge:
- Because of the lack of fuel controls, employees could have used the company cards to fuel personal vehicles.
- Without real-time data, it was difficult to monitor mileage or identify potential discrepancies in usage.
The Solution
Coast provided Venture Window with the tools to address these challenges comprehensively, transforming their expense management process.
Restoring Control with Flexible Spending Rules
Coast’s system allowed Venture Window to set daily spending limits and restrict purchases only to approved categories such as fuel, lumber yards, and home centers. This eliminated opportunities for misuse while still providing technicians the flexibility to purchase materials as needed.
Employees could no longer exploit generous spending allowances, and real-time visibility into transactions meant any issues could be addressed immediately.
Seamless Receipt Tracking and Reconciliation
Coast’s integrated receipt capture feature prompted employees to upload a photo of their receipt immediately after making a purchase.
Employees are prompted to take a picture of the receipts, so we have instant information about what exactly they purchased at the home centers. We know they’re not purchasing fertilizer for their yards while they’re in there buying some tools.
This streamlined process eliminated the hassle of chasing down missing receipts and freed up several hours of administrative time each month.
It also ensures nearly 100% compliance:
The Coast system really offers us tremendous access to detailed receipts in a seamless and efficient manner, and we’re getting close to a hundred percent compliance where we probably had fifty percent before.
Enhanced Fuel Expense Management
Coast’s platform enabled Venture Window to monitor fuel purchases with precision. Employees fueling company vehicles were required to input the vehicle’s plate number, creating a clear record of which vehicle and individual made each transaction.
This feature not only improved oversight but also provided valuable data to identify discrepancies and optimize fuel usage.
Streamlined Online Purchases with Virtual Cards
Coast’s virtual cards provided a tailored solution for Venture Window’s online expenses, such as advertising and building permits. Each virtual card was assigned to a specific category, making it easy to track spending and generate detailed reports.
By segmenting expenses through virtual cards, Venture Window gained a clear, organized view of their spending and streamlined their accounting processes even further.
Results
Since implementing Coast, Venture Window has seen significant improvements in its expense management process:
- Reduced misuse: Unauthorized purchases have been virtually eliminated.
- Time savings: 3–4 hours of bookkeeping time saved monthly through automated reconciliation.
- Improved transparency: Real-time tracking and receipt capture provide clarity and accountability.
- Better fuel oversight: Tracking fuel purchases by vehicle and driver has optimized spending.
With Coast, Venture Window has the flexibility and control needed to empower its employees while safeguarding its bottom line.
